PETALING JAYA: The education ministry will meet with relevant stakeholders before the three new pages on Jawi script for the Year Four Bahasa Melayu syllabus next year go to print, FMT has learnt.
A source said there are no plans to delay the Jawi script lessons, scheduled to begin in January, followed by its introduction in Year Five and Six during the next two years.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the source said the ministry is making some last-minute amendments to the contents of the Jawi script lessons as requested by the Cabinet.
“So when we’re ready, we will inform them (the stakeholders),” the source said, adding that everyone, including vocal critics of the move, would be consulted.
The source said the meeting was likely to be held soon as it would take some time for the textbooks to be printed.
The Cabinet has decided that khat lessons will be renamed Jawi script and introduced in the syllabus for vernacular schools next year, despite a backlash from various parties, including the Chinese educationist group Dong Zong.
However, the Jawi script lessons would be optional and not a test subject.
The Cabinet also agreed that Jawi script would only be introduced with the prior agreement of parent-teacher associations (PIBG) and other parents.
Yesterday, a coalition of 30 national NGOs and parties from the peninsula, Sabah and Sarawak urged the government to put the Jawi script lessons on hold until a transparent and proper discussion with all relevant parties is held.
Coalition of Seni Khat Action Team (Sekat) secretary Arun Dorasamy said there had been no presentation or discussion by the education ministry, adding that the decision was made in a rush.
He said if the government insists on proceeding with the introduction of Jawi script without discussing with relevant parties, Sekat would hold a “National Skip School” day to show their protest, with the cooperation of parents who do not want their children to learn the subject nationwide.
However, it said this would be a last resort to show the coalition’s dissatisfaction.
FMT’s source, however, rubbished Arun’s claim that there was a rush to introduce Jawi script, pointing out that it had been in the works since 2014 during the previous administration.
It said the stakeholders had been consulted since then.
This was then debated and passed by the national curriculum committee in 2015 as part of the revisions to the Standard Based Curriculum for Primary Schools or KSSR.
The source also said there are no plans to have Jawi lessons introduced in the Art Studies subject as was recommended by NGOs. - FMT
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